Although Rhode Island has a successful hospital and large medical institution recycling program, it no longer has a readily available, free residential medical sharp recycling program. Most home-users of insulin or other injectable medications now have no free choice but to put their used sharps in a plastic container and throw it in the trash. Unfortunately, many of these containers end up in the RIRRC's recycling facility instead of the trash, endangering workers and slowing down the recycling operation.

H5888/S459 would help reinstate a home-based medical sharp recycling program in RI, giving residents a much safer system for disposal.